October 6, 2015

Want to set an auto world record? Get a Ford. The Guinness World Records 2016 is full of them!

The first circumnavigation by amphibious car

…and the only one so far! It took Ben Carlin more than 10 years to complete the 50,000-mile journey over land and sea in a modified Ford GPA amphibious vehicle named Half-Safe. Ben arrived back in Montreal, Canada, on May 8, 1958 after visiting 38 countries.

The largest parade of Ford Mustangs

The Mount Hood Mustang and Fords Club corralled 766 Ford Mustangs at the Woodburn Dragstrip in Oregon, U.S., on April 12, 2014 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the iconic car.

Photo credit Guinness World Records
Engineer and conservationist Martin Bacon drove his “Bean Machine” – a Ford P100 pickup converted to produce gas from coffee – at an average 65.5 mph at Woodford Airfield, Stockport, U.K. on February 19, 2013.

Most produced automobile

The Ford F-series nameplate has appeared on more vehicles than any other – more than 29.3 million F-series pickup trucks. The first in the series, the F-1, was launched in 1948.

Fastest jet-powered fire truck

Who needs blues-and-twos when you have a rocket trail like this? The world’s fastest fire truck was powered by two Rolls Royce Bristol Viper jet engines generating more than 6,000 PS each and 5,443 kg of thrust. The Hawaiian Eagle is a 1940 Ford owned by Shannen Seydel, of Navarre, Florida, U.S., and reached 407 mph in Ontario, Canada, on July 11, 1998.

First industrial moving assembly line

Ford Motor Company founder Henry Ford delivered the pioneering assembly line at the Highland Park plant, Michigan, in 1913. This reduced assembly time for a Ford Model T from more than 12 hours to about 90 minutes.

Longest time to sponsor a sports team

In a partnership that saw more than its fair share of home runs, the Doenges Ford dealership in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, U.S., sponsored American Legion Baseball for 66 years from 1941.

Most influential automobile of the 20th century

The Ford Model T – which sold 15 million between 1908 and 1927 – was in 1999 voted the most influential automobile of the 20th century by the Global Automotive Elections Foundation.

The fastest reverse drive over 500 miles

Rob Gibney from Canada covered 501.69 miles with an average speed of 41.42 mph in a Ford Crown Victoria at Race City Motorsports Park, Calgary, Canada, on August 22, 2004.

The largest living roof

The roof of the Ford Rouge Centre in the U.S., is covered with 42,180 m² of low-growing vegetation called sedum, making it the world’s largest “living roof”. Planted in a 7.6 cm thick mat-like material, the vegetation insulates the roof, saving on heating costs. In addition, it creates a habitat for birds and butterflies.

The largest simultaneous TV advert premiere

On November 1, 1999 Ford aired their Global Anthem advert in 190 countries around the world. The advert, featuring a 13-year-old Charlotte Church, was shown first in New Zealand then headed west around the world, airing at 9 pm local time. By the end of the day it had been seen by an estimated one billion people; 80 per cent of the world’s viewing population.

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